


Spring Serenade for a Princess

by healingqilin



Series: Four Seasons, Five Songs [1]
Category: Ailee (Musician), SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Babies, Bromance, Childbirth, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Family Fluff, Fluff, Future Fic, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Married Couple, Married Life, i don't do fluff, idk how to fluff, wait is this even fluff?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-26
Updated: 2017-06-26
Packaged: 2018-11-19 07:28:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,254
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11308602
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/healingqilin/pseuds/healingqilin
Summary: Jihoon waits for Yejin to give birth to their first-born daughter. Seungcheol has made a bet with the other members. Will they get a Woozi lookalike or an Ailee lookalike? Jihoon doesn’t really care for that as his child obviously means more to him. So, guess who wins at the end?





	Spring Serenade for a Princess

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, before anything else, I'd just like to say that I wrote this for the sole purpose of adding more works to the AileexWoozi tag. There are only 3 so far (if I recall) and all of them are platonic and I can't handle that. Though I ship Jicheol, I ship /romantic/ Aizi (can we call it that?) with a passion too. I can't see them as sister-brother/mom-son, sorry. I know there are others like me. Show yourselves and let's turn this flimsy raft into a sailboat, at least. :)

_There’s absolutely nothing more nerve-wracking than this moment._

 

That was what Jihoon said to himself the first time he left Busan to become a trainee in Seoul. That was what he said to himself on Seventeen’s debut showcase and the first day of their first concert.

 

That was also what he said to himself on the day he married the love of his life.

 

And now, nine months later, he repeats that same sentence in his head as he sits in the waiting area of the hospital.

“She’ll be fine,” Seungcheol reassures him, squeezing his tensed shoulder. “ _They’ll_ be fine.”

Jihoon is glad Seungcheol is with him. It could have been any other member, but he was most comfortable with him. Jihoon could say anything and Seungcheol would understand. He could say nothing at all, and he would still understand.

“Thank you for coming all the way here,” Jihoon says quietly.

“Hey, no problem!” Seungcheol pats his best friend’s back. “I would have never forgiven myself if I missed this moment. I was the first friend you made in Seoul, your main wingman when you proposed, and your best man at your wedding. I should be here too for the birth of your first child. You _are_ gonna make me a godparent, right?”

“Of course. You’re on the top of the list along with Amber _noona_.”

It’s awfully quiet outside the delivery room with just some shuffling and murmurs from the doctors and nurses passing by. From time to time, he could hear his wife’s groaning and shrieking. The silence (plus the screaming from the delivery room) makes Jihoon more uneasy, and he starts fiddling with his two most precious accessories: the ring he shares with his 12 brothers and the ring he shares with his wife.

“It’s a girl, right? This first baby of yours?” Seungcheol asks in an effort to calm him.

“Yeah.”

“She’s gonna be really pretty.”

“I hope she looks like her mom,” says Jihoon, his gaze fixed on the cool white floor.

Seungcheol clicks his tongue. “Oh, I doubt that. When Ailee _noona_ posted the 3D sonogram photos on her Instagram, bro…your baby looks just like you. She already has the same nose bridge as you. And your eyes.”

Jihoon snorts. “You could tell all that through a sonogram photo?”

“I made a bet with the other members that your first baby would look like you, okay? And I’m confident that she will.”

“Alright, for how much and who betted the opposite?” Jihoon finally stops spinning the rings around his fingers and turns to face his best friend.

“Ah, let’s see,” Seungcheol cups his chin, “Mingyu, Wonwoo, Jun, Dino, Dokyeom and I are positive your baby girl will look like you. Everyone else thinks otherwise. Except for Jeonghan. He hasn’t picked a side yet, but he did say that he wanted to be in my team _only_ because he wants to see a female version of you.”

“Typical.” Jihoon chuckles.

“We bet twenty thousand.”

“Just twenty thousand?”

“Each. Member. To whichever team wins.” A smirk forms on Seungcheol’s lips. “So, I really hope Seventeen’s first princess does look like a female version of you.”

Hearing the word _princess_ pulls Jihoon back to his anxious state. What about his _queen_? Was she okay? She’d been in labor for almost 24 hours. Had his baby already been born but he was too engrossed in his conversation with Seungcheol to notice? Jihoon exhales, and it sounds eerily loud in the quiet hallway.

He begins to feel a little lightheaded. Events he experienced with Yejin start playing in his memories. Their slightly awkward first date and to their first kiss. The simple marriage proposal he spent weeks preparing for (which the other members insisted that he do something grander but that really wasn’t his style). Their private wedding, their first intimate night together…and Yejin’s pregnancy announcement. That last one took much longer to play in his head. Knowing his wife and her status as Korea’s pop diva, of course, she had to tell the world that she was having a baby in the most Beyoncé-esque way she could think of.

It was in KCON New York. She requested not to host that time, which confused the organizers but they agreed to it anyway. Johnny of NCT and Jae of Day6 were more than happy to take her place alongside Eric Nam. There were a lot of new popular groups performing, and Seventeen had been invited as a special guest to perform a medley of songs from the album that gave them their latest _daesang_ award. After their set and the much-clamored-for live performance of _Q &A_, Ailee had one more song to perform on her own. She danced and sang just like the same Ailee from years before, and the audience partied along. Seventeen had been watching her in a pit area for artists. While everyone kept their eyes on Ailee, Mingyu kept his on Jihoon. The vocal team leader was unusually pensive, swaying back and forth, sometimes pacing in what little space he had in the pit. As the song was nearing its climax, Ailee sashayed to the extended stage, close to the artists’ pit and the majority of the KCON audience. She sang her last note effortlessly, then unbuttoned her long blazer, exposing her fitted mini dress underneath. Ailee beamed at the audience and the members of her husband’s band, all while caressing the baby bump she had.

Jihoon swore the first scream of joy he heard came from Mingyu’s mouth. It all happened too fast. Next thing he knew the members swarmed him and shouted ‘Congratulations!’ in his ear, drowning out the gasps and other screams of delight from the audience around him.

“I knew it! I knew it!” Mingyu cried as he hugged the new father-to-be.

Jihoon knew it too. He knew it before they all did. But there was something about hearing (and understanding) their American fans say ‘Oh my God, she’s pregnant!’ and ‘I’m so happy! Woozi’s gonna be a dad!’ that made his eyes water the same way when Yejin showed him the two red bars on the test kit that fateful day.

Wonwoo had to shield the other artists standing near them from Soonyoung’s incessant, directionless jumping. Seungkwan began sobbing hard while clapping like a seal and Junhui—out of nowhere—managed to lift Jihoon up in a piggyback for the KCON crowd to see. Jisoo back-hugged him, and even with all the cheers and happy tears, Jihoon’s ears could pick up his words: ‘My son will have a playmate soon!’

It felt like a family reunion of sorts. Jisoo had rejoined the boys for the event, coming to New York from his hometown of Los Angeles where he was raising his own family. Junhui and Minghao took a short break from their activities in China to perform with their Korean brothers once again. And the whole team was expecting another “baby shining diamond” in their growing family.

Yejin locked eyes with Jihoon who was still being carried by Junhui. She blew him a flying kiss, which he returned with just as much love as she did.

“I love you, Jihoonie.”

 

_Jihoonie_

_Jihoonie_

“Jihoonie!”

“What?”

“Bro, can’t you hear that?” Seungcheol is face-to-face with him, wearing the biggest, sweetest smile he’s ever seen him have.

 _Hear what?_ Jihoon thinks. The hallway is just as quiet as it was a few minutes ago. The only noises he _can_ hear are his and Seungcheol’s breathing, their voices, and…is that a baby crying?

“Huh?”

“ _Noona_ just gave birth!” Seungcheol elates.

The doors to the delivery room swing open and one of the doctors peeps out to signal Jihoon to come in. The new father stands still, face blank.

“What are you waiting for? Go see them!” Seungcheol pushes him to the direction of the room.

Jihoon stumbles on his first two steps and then looks back mouth agape at Seungcheol. His _hyung_ waves at him to keep walking.

“I’ll wait here. Go and see your family,” he tells him.

The doctor opens the door wider for Jihoon to enter. This room is unlike the others in the hospital. He had specifically chosen a VIP room for his wife, one with gentler colors and homey interior to ease Yejin’s labor. He wasn’t too sure if it helped her in any way. However, being inside calmed _him_ down. But what relieves him more is seeing his wife on the bed with their little daughter lying peacefully on her chest.

“ _Yeobo?_ ”

Yejin hums in reply. She could barely open her eyes from the fatigue.

“How are you?” Jihoon asks in a whisper.

“I’m okay,” she croaks, but with a smile on her face. “Dearest, look at her.”

Though still exhausted, Yejin carefully angles her baby’s face for her husband to see.

“Isn’t she beautiful?”

Jihoon grabs a seat and sits next to the bed. _She_ is _beautiful_ , he thinks. She’s small and wrinkly and rosy all over from being just minutes old, but beautiful nonetheless.

“Very,” he says, voice cracking.

“I think she has your nose,” Yejin mumbles. “Even your eyes too.”

A tear slides down his cheek.

“She’s so beautiful.”

Jihoon covers his mouth with his hand and his face scrunches. He could feel a lump forming in his throat. The lump is too strong for him to push back down that it comes out as a cough. Then, the tears finally cascade without stopping.

He never thought that he could cry this hard. There were many times in his life that made him so happy to the point that he’d cry, but never to this extent. He was Lee Jihoon, the cool and collected producer of Seventeen. If he cried, it would just be sincere—comical, to the other members—weeps and snivels. Who knew a little baby girl would actually make him _sob_?

“Aww, dearest, don’t cry.” Yejin lifts a tired hand to her husband’s cheek to wipe the tears.

“I’m sorry…it’s just…I can’t believe this is real.” Jihoon bawls. “I can’t believe she’s real.”

Almost as if to prove her realness to her father, the baby screeches and begins crying as well.

Yejin hushes her while rubbing her back. “Are you crying ‘cause daddy’s crying, sweetheart? There, there. Daddy’s just happy you’re finally here.”

When their baby doesn’t stop, Yejin turns to Jihoon. “Sing the lullaby you wrote for her.”

“What?”

“Your lullaby. You sang it to her a lot while she was still in the womb. She might calm down if she recognizes your voice.”

Jihoon leans forward just close enough for his daughter to hear him. The lullaby starts out as a whisper. Yejin hums the melody, then she sings along softly with her husband. The baby whimpers and stirs in her position, but the crying soon stops.

When Yejin first showed him her pregnancy result, one of the first things Jihoon did was run straight to his music studio. He opened up the calendar app and counted nine months. His finger landed on April. Spring. The best time to see the cherry blossoms in full bloom.

And that would be the prompt for his new song for his yet unborn child.

He wrote the lullaby thinking of soft flower petals, cool breezes turning warmer, and new beginnings. This was going to be a new beginning for both of them. Whether the baby would be born a girl or a boy, it didn’t matter. The birth of their first child would be a new spring for them, and a chance to make new beautiful memories together.

Their baby girl yawns and goes back to sleep just before the lullaby finishes. It’s only for a split second, but Jihoon is sure he saw his daughter smile.

 

 

Days later out of the hospital and back in their home, the Lee family holds another reunion with Seventeen and a handful of Yejin’s close idol friends. Their humble house in Busan looks more crowded with the number of guests, but Jihoon’s mother doesn’t seem to mind having all those mouths to feed. Having only raised one child all her life, her son’s “brothers” inside their house is a breath of fresh air for her.

“So, two babies were already born from the vocal team,” mentions Seungkwan. “When are hip hop team and performance team gonna follow suit?”

The members of the aforementioned teams avoid any eye contact with him. Wonwoo shifts in his seat and changes the subject.

“When can we get to see the baby, Jihoonie?” he asks.

“And when can we know her name?” Chan adds.

Jihoon takes a sip of his coffee. “ _Noona_ is still prettifying her,” he tells them. “The baby just woke up a few minutes ago.”

Kevin and Eric, who are sitting where they could easily see the stairs to the second floor, spot Amber waving at them.

“I think they’re ready,” Eric tells Jihoon.

“Make way, make way!” Amber announces. “Her Royal Majesty Amy Lee brings the crown princess to greet the townsfolk.”

Yejin giggles and lightly slaps her best friend’s arm. “Amber, not too loud. You’ll make her cry.”

The two Jimins, AOA’s Jimin and 15&’s Jimin, descend first while tossing rose petals all over the steps. Henry had brought his violin with him and he plays a sweet, blithe melody for the grand entrance. Jihoon raises a brow at the whole spectacle, which Yejin immediately notices.

“I’m sorry, dearest. This was _their_ impromptu idea. I had nothing to do with it.”

Jihoon saunters over to his wife and out of habit and courtesy, places his hand on the small of her back. He leads her towards their guests whose eyes are excitedly searching for a decent glimpse of the little princess’ face.

“You all look like a pack of hungry wolves,” comments Jihoon.

“But we wanna see her already!” whines Seokmin.

“Alright, alright. Here she is.” Yejin takes a seat in between Seungcheol and Hansol. The others move in closer for a better look.

Here she is, indeed, swaddled up in a cherry blossom pink blanket. Her face is just as rosy, but her arms, exposed by the short sleeves of her top, are as fair as white jasmine petals. She’s only days old and yet her tiny head is already covered in thick, wispy black hair flying in all directions, held down by a ruffled pink headband. Her honorary aunts and uncles remain speechless, taking in her image and embedding it forever into their memories. She stretches in her mother’s embrace, and that prompts a chorus of cooing from everyone in the room.

“Have you given her a name yet?” Kevin asks.

“Of course we did,” replies Yejin. She faces her husband.

“Lee Sejung,” says Jihoon.

The room fills up with voices repeating the name in varying levels of cuteness. Once Sejung’s eyes and nose scrunches up, her parents know that the voices have gone from cute to annoying.

“Shh, she hates loud noises,” Yejin scolds them. Everyone then whispers her name instead.

“Just curious,” Jisoo chimes in, “but does she have an English name too? I thought it would be cute if she would have one just like Dareum here. Isn’t that right, _Isaac_?” Jisoo’s one-year-old son immediately turns to his father upon hearing his own English name. Little Isaac’s adorable, unintelligible blubbering causes fits of giggles in the room.

“Yeah, about that," Yejin says, “a lot of my fans asked me the same thing on Twitter and Instagram. I told them I didn’t have any ideas, so they sent me some of their own. There were a lot of great suggestions, but there was one in particular that got my attention.”

“What was it?” prods Hansol.

“Cecilia.”

“That’s such an old-school name,” Eric mutters jokingly.

Yejin continues after giving him a well-deserved smack on the knee. “That person who suggested the name tweeted me a screenshot of her reason. You see, there’s a Catholic saint named Cecilia. Like all saints—from what I’m aware of—she’s also a patron of a certain thing. Kinda like Saint Francis of Assisi is the patron of animals.”

All the guests nod intently as they listen to her explanation.

“Saint Cecilia happens to be the patroness of musicians, which applies so much to me and Jihoonie.”

“Wow, that’s so cool!” Soonyoung exclaims.

“But the other reason that made me choose that name was that of her feast day. All saints have feast days when people would honor them. Saint Cecilia’s feast day is an important day for me too. November 22.”

Mingyu’s face lights up at the sudden realization. “Ah! That’s Jihoon _hyung’s_ birthday!”

“Exactly,” Yejin says. “That’s why Sejung’s English name is Cecilia. Though Eric _oppa_ is somewhat right about it sounding old-school. So we just call her by her nickname, Cezi.”

“Because it rhymes with Woozi?” notes Henry.

Jihoon’s mouth pops into ‘O’ shape. “I…didn’t notice that until you mentioned it. Hmm, well what do you know?”

“Her name may rhyme with her father’s, but does she _resemble_ him in terms of facial features?” Seungkwan’s variety show host persona takes center stage. “Don’t forget! We made a bet about this.”

“I say yes!” Seungcheol speaks first.

“Are you blind?” counters Minghao. “The entire area of her eyes looks like Ailee _noona’s_.”

Hansol and Chan agree to his statement.

Seokmin attacks the other side’s argument. “ _You’re_ blind! Sejungie definitely has Jihoon _hyung’s_ nose bridge.”

“And the shape her eyes closed look exactly like Jihoonie’s too,” adds Junhui.

As the members of Seventeen bicker over who’s right and who’s wrong, Yejin’s friends, the older idols (plus the ‘not-so-old’ Jamie Park) watch them with confused expressions.

“Was there a huge sum of money involved in this?” asks Jimin.

“Yup,” Jihoon and Yejin answer together.

“Is it too late to join in? I’d like some free cash too.” Jamie smiles naughtily. “I’m putting my bet on Cezi looking more like Ailee _eonni_.”

Wonwoo, who had heard her decision, yells out a ‘No!’. Yejin quickly puts a finger to her lips to shush him.

“If this keeps up, my daughter is gonna cry and you all will be held responsible,” Jihoon barks at his brothers.

The members finally hush but shoot piercing glares at one another in retaliation. Chan breaks the silence. “Wait, Jeonghan _hyung_ hasn’t picked a side yet, has he?”

“That’s right,” Seungcheol agrees. “Join us, Jeonghannie. They already have six people against us, so you gotta join our side to make it even, at least.”

“That’s unfair!” Seungkwan whines. “Let him choose,” he says as he sneakily motions for Jeonghan to join ‘the Ailee team’.

“Okay, since you’ve given me the right to choose,” says Jeonghan, “I choose to join neither side.”

The other people in the room all let out a resounding ‘huh?’

“I bet that Sejungie will look like both her parents,” he states confidently. “I mean, just look at Jihoonie and Ailee _noona_. They’re different but they also have similar features. This is my bet, and I’m the only one who can take this side.”

 

 

On Sejung’s 100th day, all of Jihoon and Yejin’s friends return to Busan to celebrate. Just like in Yejin’s baby shower and Sejung’s presentation after her birth, the event leaves the guests feeling the utmost joy and gratitude for the blessings of life and love. Today is an extra special day for Jeonghan too, as he is also left ₩220,000 richer from the party.

 

**Author's Note:**

> I hate to rain on Jeonghan's parade, but I headcanon baby Cezi looking more like her father after she reaches puberty. Haha. Anyways, despite not being from America, I converted USD to KRW and idk if that amount of money is good enough for a bet in Korean standards.  
> 


End file.
